


Of all the Things I'd Hoped you'd be, That you Weren't

by FireThatFox



Category: Naruto
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-20
Updated: 2021-02-20
Packaged: 2021-03-16 09:01:08
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,200
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29573574
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FireThatFox/pseuds/FireThatFox
Summary: Sasuke has left Konoha again.  He tried to make it work with Sakura, but the demons of his past continued to haunt him.At least she still has Kakashi, Ino and Naruto."So, what do you think?"  Kakashi asked his former student and future Hokage."Better late than never old man."  Naruto grinned and slapped him on the back.
Relationships: Haruno Sakura & Hatake Kakashi, Haruno Sakura/Hatake Kakashi
Comments: 18
Kudos: 48





	Of all the Things I'd Hoped you'd be, That you Weren't

“Hey, you gonna be okay?” Slate grey eyes watched Sakura slump in upon herself.

"Of course.” She turned to him with a bright smile on her face, as fake as her marriage of three years, as false as the man walking away from them, down the only road that led in and out of Konohagakure.

Sakura turned back one last time to watch Sasuke walk away from her.

“None of that…” Kakashi nodded to the disappearing figure of Sasuke Uchiha, the last Uchiha of Konoha. “...was your fault.”

“I know but, it still hurts.” Sakura dropped the fake smile, leaning into her old sensei’s side as he stepped up beside her, his arm falling casually over her shoulder.

“Come on Sakura. I’ll let you buy me dinner.” Kakashi shoved his other hand into his pocket and crinkled his eyes at her.

A soft giggle slipped past her lips before she could stop herself. Meeting Kakashi’s eyes she let herself go and laughed out loud. It was like a weight had been lifted from her chest. It felt like freedom in a way. She took a deep breath. Yeah, she was going to be okay.

“I’ll buy dinner sensei, but tomorrow you have to come in for your annual check up. Starting now, I’m not just going to sign off on your paperwork, understand?” She fixed Kakashi with a stern green gaze that brokered no argument.

“Sure sure.” He humoured his old student. “I’ll come visit you tomorrow at work, Sakura. All you had to do was ask you know, you didn’t have to try to ‘trick’ me into coming to see you.”

Sakura’s smile faded from her lips. Was Kakashi sensei flirting with her? Impossible.

“Right.” She stretched her arms up and over her head, arching her back. “Where did you want to eat old man?”

Kakashi grinned at her from under his mask. “There’s a new dumpling place on the far end of the market. Have you been there yet?”

Sakura shook her head.

“Great.” Kakashi pulled her closer, his arm still around her neck and began walking to the other end of the village with her tucked up into his side.

Sakura blushed at their close contact. “Uh Kakashi?”

The Copy nin looked down at the pinkette. “Yeah?”

“Uh, nothing nevermind.” Sakura blushed and looked at her feet as they walked down the street together. She was reading too much into it. Kakashi wasn’t interested in her like that. She was so stupid, she berated herself.

Kakashi smirked from under the cover of his mask. Sasuke and Sakura had tried to make it work but the demons of Sasuke’s past refused to die. Kakashi, understood this better than most and unlike the rest of them, hadn’t tried to make the Uchiha stay. In fact, he thought it best for everyone, particularly Sakura if he left and never came back.

Sakura had grown into a very beautiful woman over the years, but more than that, she had become a very skilled and powerful kunoichi and healer. Her efforts in the last great war had only boosted her growing popularity. Personally, Kakashi thought the more successful Sakura became the worse her relationship with Sasuke had gotten. The boy had never been one for close quarter competition.

Then again, not everyone's teammates were the nine tailed jinchuuriki and the Fifth Hokage’s apprentice. Even being the last Uchiha was little in comparison to the blonde and the pinkette in the broad scheme of things. Sasuke's defect at the age of thirteen hadn’t been forgotten either. Even though the war was over, had been over for almost five years now, betrayal as deep as Sasuke’s would take a lot longer for the world to forget.

Naruto could shout his forgiveness from the rooftops and Sakura could swear up and down until she was blue in the face that she forgave him, but Kakashi knew better. Too many had died, too much love had been lost between the three for any of them to ever be the same again. No, they might claim they forgave him, but he knew they didn’t, not really, not in their hearts where it mattered the most.

As for Kakashi, he would never forgive Sasuke Uchiha for what he did to their team, for what he continued to do to Konoha, by existing.

Kakashi didn’t adhere to the ‘better late than never’ turn of phrase Sakura had clung to for the last three years. Sometimes too late meant too bad as far as Kakashi was concerned. However, perhaps he needed to give it a bit more thought.

Perhaps he should take his own advice.

She could feel the curious eyes on them as they made their way to the otherside of the village. She could hear the tongues wagging in the stands as they passed.

“Did he leave yet? Good riddance.”

“He never should have come back, I don’t care if he helped save the village maybe it wouldn’t have needed to be saved if he hadn’t betrayed us.”

“Poor girl, I never did see what she saw in him.”

Kakashi could feel Sakura’s shoulders stiffen under the weight of their words. She didn’t need this right now, he should have offered to buy her dinner, brought it to her at home instead. 

“Sakura.” He began.

“It’s fine. It doesn’t bother me.” She lied. She knew what he was going to say. “I can’t stop them from talking, you know that.”

He did. It didn’t mean he didn’t want to shield her from it though, if he could.

Ten minutes later they were sitting side by side at the bar of the cutest dumpling shop Sakura had ever seen. “When did this open up?” She didn’t even know it was here.

“While you were working nonstop without a breath for the last month.” He teased her. “I think your mail has been rerouted to your office at the hospital, you’re always there.”

Sakura laughed. “I may have fallen asleep on the couch in my office once or twice.” She paused.

“Six times.” Kakashi set his menu down.

“Six times.” She admitted. “...but I don’t live there. I go home once in a while. I’m eating lunch with you now.” She pointed out.

“Sakura, how’s that plant I gave you doing?” He asked her slyly as he sipped his tea.

“Do you know what you want?” She waved to the proprietor. “Let’s order.” She ignored his vindicated snort.

“I’ll come into the hospital tomorrow for my annual check up Sakura, if you let me buy you dinner tomorrow.” Kakashi threw his challenge out of the side of his mouth as they ordered their food.

Three full minutes passed before Sakura spoke. “Are you, is it...I mean dinner would be uh.”

“A date.” Kakashi watched her fidget in her seat. Was it too soon? Maybe he should have waited…

“Okay.” She agreed quietly. “...but slow okay, I want to go slow Kakashi.”

“Just the way I like it.” He hid his smile in his mask when she blinked at him, then slapped him on the arm.

“Ass.” Sakura muttered as she picked up her own cup of tea and sipped.


End file.
